Code Club

Code Club is a nationwide network of after-school coding clubs for children aged 9-11 led by volunteers. Across the UK there are currently 783 Code Clubs aiming to teach young children how to program. More specifically, this involves a talented developer showing them how to make computer games, animations and websites. The students will use and develop the key skills needed for programming including command prompts, logic and problem solving.

On behalf of Web Applications UK, Training Manager Shaun runs a Code Club at Oasis Limeside Primary School every Tuesday evening. It is not a secret that we are passionate about education and Shaun is a huge part of this. He is extremely keen to be a positive influence in the lives of young people and believes that Code Club is an inspiring way to do so.

Our Code Club is split into four terms and the children at Oasis Limeside have just finished their first. The first and second term involve using Scratch, an innovative learning environment for beginners to programming. The project for the children to complete was Whack-a-Witch, which involved creating a game similar to whack-a-mole. Using a logical structure and following specific instructions, the children created witches, make them fly and disappear when clicked. To make it into a game, a points system was added along with a countdown timer, giving the children 30 seconds to whack as many witches as they could. As with all software development, after each stage they tested their game and edited accordingly.

Ten students successfully completed the first term of Code Club and received a certificate. Term two will build on their current knowledge of Scratch but will involve more difficult tasks, really stretching their ability. Term three goes on to teach the basis of web development using HTML whilst term four introduces Python. As a non-technical member of the Web Applications UK team, I have been getting involved, learning the basics of programming. I have a feeling I will become a developer in no time!